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My memories of Mexico are painted in bright and vivid hues, dashes of crazy colors swirled together, stacked in neat little piles, splashed across the sky, and cut up in little cubes. The Mexican aesthetic is beautiful and bright, chaotic yet orderly, surreal yet existing right in front of your eyes, and so very magical. The devil is in the details in a country like Mexico, and to truly appreciate the essence of the country, you should buy some jicama and watermelon slices tossed with lime juice and chili powder, all prepared right before your eyes. I can still remember the subtle combination of sweet, salty, tangy, and spicy all in one delicious and crunchy bite, in a beautiful package. Beauty and creativity in such unexpected and magical ways, and this is just at the corner fruit stand. Now that is what I call the Mexaesthetic.

In Mexico, nothing goes to waste. Take the pig, for example, where tacos are made from it’s snout, ears, cheeks, tail, brains, and even hoofs. In America, we would never consider doing such a thing, but think about all the food that goes to waste back in the states. I rarely buy meet in the states that isn’t boneless and skinless, something which is practically impossible to find here. Not to mention that this boneless skinless food is wrapped in plastic and held in a Styrofoam try and has been cut up and prepared by a poorly paid, overworked laborer in dangerous conditions.

I once went to translate for a health fair at a poultry plant in rural Virginia and I was surprised and saddened at the working conditions I encountered. Here in Mexico, you can go to a butcher and have your meat cut up right in front of you by a jolly old man who will gladly cut the feet and head off your chicken if you ask because he knows he can sell it to someone else.

My development economics professor just told me that US pork farmers are trying to sell their unused pig parts to Mexico for rock bottom prices and that the Mexican farmers are up in arms about their inability to compete with prices. While I like the idea utilizing a previously unused resource (such as pig heads), I think I’ll leave it to the Mexicans to enjoy their tacos de trompa and pata (hoof and snout tacos).